Algerian Parliament Elects the New Interim President
The Algerian parliament has, as expected, elected Abdelkader Bensalah as interim president. He must hold that position for three months in the run-up to elections, local media reported.
The 77-year-old Bensalah has been chairman of the State Council, the Algerian upper house, since 2002.
He succeeds the 82-year-old former president Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who was forced to resign on April 2 after months of mass demonstrations against the regime. Bouteflika was president for almost 20 years.
For opponents of the regime, Bensalah is not an alternative to Bouteflika, but only a member of his ruling clique called “the Power.” It is seen as a mafia that has held the country in its grip since independence in 1962.
